Monday, 2 January 2017

WWII ~ My Introduction to Wargaming

I decided to paint up some WWII stuff.

Like many folks of my era, I was introduced to wargaming and modelling via Airfix kits and plastic figures. These figures were HO/OO scale or, 1/72 or, as they are called today 20mm. I played a lot of WWII wargames in my youth and I had a very large collection of figures and vehicles of all nations. Unfortunately I sold them off a long while back for a variety of reasons and never played WWII again.

Until now!

In getting back into WWII, I had options. This time around I can go for 15mm, 28mm, 18mm etc but I opted for good old 1/72 (20mm). To me this is the correct scale for WWII. There are loads of cheap figures available as well as a huge range of vehicle, AFV and aircraft kits.One thing I really don't understand is WWII in 28mm. To me it just seems an expensive and limited option to take.

I like WWII wargaming at the tactical level using a 1:1 man/figure/vehicle ratio and I like games to be platoon or, at the most, company sized encounters. The rules I use to use are not appreciated by today's players so I've had to look for something new and as yet I haven't settled on anything. I might just be a stick in the mud and keep with what I like. Who knows?

So, I went out and bought some troops. A box of Germans and a box of G.I.'s. I thought a platoon of each would be a good starting point. I figured a platoon of each, with a couple of vehicles added should be able to provide some simple games as well as being good for testing out various sets of rules.

The figures I got are by Valiant Games. They are supposed to be 1/72 but they are actually a bit bigger. No worries though because I don't intend to buy many of them. Each box has a full platoon as well as heavy weapons so they are just what I want.

Anyhow, I painted up a platoon of G.I.'s first ~ 41 figures in three 12 man sections and a 5 man command team ~ and they took me about a week (due to Christmas festivities). I expect the Germans to take less than that when I get started. They are nice figures. I did a pretty basic paint job on them and they came up okay. They are based on washers because they're cheap and to give them some weight.

About Me

I've been a wargamer since the 1970's and I originally started this blog to chart my 28mm sculpting. However, I have since stopped sculpting and this blog has become dedicated to my wargaming hobby.
I play a range of wargames from skirmish sized games through to Big Battalions I started with WWII in the mid 1970's when I also use to play a lot of board games too. Many years of D&D followed and then a long sabbatical. I started wargaming again in the early 2000's and have continued in various forms ever since.